...a collection of entertaining tales that puts the fun back into dark fiction, with ironic twists and tongue-in-cheek wit to temper the jagged edge.

Charlaine Harris reveals the dark side of going green, when a quartet of die-hard environmentalists hosts a fundraiser with a gory twist in "An Evening with Al Gore"...In an all-new Dresden Files story from Jim Butcher, when it comes to tracking deadly paranormal doings, there's no such thing as a "Day Off" for the Chicago P.D.'s wizard detective, Harry Dresden...Sherrilyn Kenyon turns a cubicle-dwelling MBA with no life into a demon-fighting seraph with one hell of an afterlife in "Where Angels Fear to Tread"...Celebrity necromancer Jaime Vegas is headlining a sold-out séance tour, but behind the scenes, a disgruntled ghost has a bone to pick, in Kelley Armstrong's "The Ungrateful Dead." Plus tales guaranteed to get under your skin -- in a good way -- from

Janet Berliner Don D'Ammassa Nancy Holder Nancy KilpatrickJ. A. Konrath and F. Paul Wilson Joe R. Lansdale Will LudwigsenSharyn McCrumb Mark Onspaugh Mike Resnick Steven SavileD. L. Snell Eric James Stone Jeff Strand Lucien Soulban Matt Venne Christopher Welch

So let the blood flow and laughter reign -- because when it comes to facing our deepest, darkest fears, a little humor goes a long way!

Exclusive Interviews, Totally Pointy Profiles, Behind-the-Scenes Info, and Other Buff-stuff About the Hit Show.

Sarah Michelle Gellar, David Boreanaz, Nicholas Brendon, Charisma Carpenter, Seth Green, Alyson Hannigan, Anthony Stewart Head, James Marsters, Juliet Landau, Mark Metcalf, Robia La Morte, Armin Shimerman, Joss Whedon, and more!

Love Bytes: Boy meets Girl, Girl meets Monster: does anyone live?
A Walking Tour of Sunnydale's Hot Spots (both of them)
The Slayer Handbook (according to Buffy Summers)
Character Guide -- who knew what and when?
Monster Guide -- vampires vs. Bezoars: who's deadlier?
Special Guest Stars -- John Ritter?!
Playlist -- what song did Buffy and Xander slow dance to?
Don't Try This at Home -- an interview with the show's stunt coordinator!
Bonus! Never-filmed dialogue from the original scripts!
Never-seen, behind-the-scenes photos -- Seth Green in makeup, Xander's closet, those icky fish guys!

The Monsters, The Mythology, The Villains, The Victims, The Fashion

Don't be caught dead without The Watcher's Guide.

When Rose's mother dies, her only comfort is the exquisite rose garden her

mother left behind. The purple blossoms serve as an assurance of her

mother's love. But Rose is dealt a second blow when her father dies and his

greedy widow, Ombrine, and her daughter, Desirée, move in and take over

the manor in true Cinderella fashion.

Fate has been cruel to Ombrine and Desirée, too. So despite their harsh

ways, Rose has compassion. But these feelings are bitterly tested when, in a

rage, Ombrine tears out the garden. Rose nearly gives up all hope -- until a

chance meeting with the king. Happiness might be within her reach, but first

she must prevail over Ombrine. And then she must determine if she has the

courage to love.

They will make everyone a sucker for eternal kisses.

Before Hazel knows it, she's in with the in crowd—and she couldn't be more thrilled!

But popularity comes with a price. Especially when one of Hazel's classmates becomes jealous of her newfound status—deadly jealous.

And you know how school gossip can just rip a girl to shreds . . .

All the secrets of the Cahors will be revealed, forcing them to overcome their greatest weaknesses in order to achieve their most powerful strengths. And only united do they have any chance at victory. Before the end, sacrifices will be made, alliances forged, and old friends lost forever.

We've known of others: The Primal Slayer, who stalked the earth and the forces of darkness in fierce solitude...Nikki, the funky hipster whose demise at Spike's hands lent an urban edge to his wardrobe and a bigger bounce to his swagger. Slayers by nature have a limited life expectancy; for each one who falls, another rises to take her place.

Tales of the Slayer, Vol. 1, chronicles Slayers past who have influenced -- and are influenced by -- the traditions and mythologies of yore. From ancient Greece, to aristocratic Slayers holding court in revolution-era France, to the legend of the Bloody Countess Elizabeth Bathory, to 1920's Munich, each girl has a personal history, a shared moral code, and a commitment to conquer evil, regardless of the cost....

During a routine slaying, Buffy encounters a vampire named Veronique who knows the slayer's name and can anticipate her attack. One who doesn't have the proper respect for Mr. Pointy. One who cannot die. If slain, she will reincarnate in a new body.

An invincible demon is the last thing Buffy needs right now. Joyce Summers is about to undergo a serious operation, calling up all of her daughter's fears about her own mortality. Angel wants to comfort Buffy, but her mother's crisis underscores the differences between them: he will live forever, while she will grow old...or die young.

Torn between her duties as the Chosen One, Buffy needs the support of her friends to help her solve a rash of grave robberies, head off an influx of new vampires, and take Veronique down once and for all. For Veronique is on a mission -- to bring about the unification of her masters, the Triumvirate, into one all-powerful demon that will drink the blood of the last man on earth...

Buffy, Oz, and Angel are Europe-bound, only they're not flying any airlines. They're traveling limbo's "ghost roads" in search of Jacques Regnier. Jacques is the sole heir of the dying Gatekeeper whose Boston mansion is the supernatural barrier restraining thousands of the world's monsters. The evil Sons of Entropy will do anything to destroy the gate -- even if it means trading the power-laden Spear of Longinus to the wicked vampires holding Jacques.

Back home, the ghost ship Flying Dutchman has set sail for Sunnydale, determined to shanghai new crewmen -- dead or alive. For Willow, Xander, Cordelia, and Giles, it's an ocean of trouble, especially when the monstrous Kraken reemerges with a vengeance.

But everyone's assistance will be needed once Buffy locates Jacques, and uncovers the shocking plans the Sons of Entropy have already placed in motion -- a plan that, if successful, will destroy the world and create a horrible new realm ruled by monsters.

Led by the fanatical Il Maestro, the Sons of Entropy are assaulting the supernatural Boston mansion that holds back the realm of monsters, and stealing the life force from the besieged Gatekeeper. In limbo, the Ghost Roads are crumbling, becoming weak and unstable where Hell and the Otherworld have begun seeping in, blurring the passages that lead to the human world. And Xander lies mortally wounded from a failed attempt to free Joyce Summers from the clutches of the zealots who hold her hostage.

With the Gatekeeper rapidly weakening, Buffy sends Willow and Cordelia to escort Xander along the Ghost Roads to the Gatehouse, which may hold his only hope of survival. Meanwhile, she, Giles, and an unlikely band of allies take their fight to the very mouth of Hell itself, desperately hoping to save Joyce and repel the evil spawn before Sunnydale becomes a demonic ground zero. Only then can Buffy safeguard the Gatekeeper's eleven-year-old heir, the only one able to prevent the ultimate destruction of humanity.

As long as there have been vampires, there has been the Slayer. One girl in all the world, to find them where they gather and to stop the spread of their evil and the swell of their numbers.

Dig into it: all--new character profiles, episode guides, quotables, and more -- a fully updated volume filled with the latest dirt on your favorite cemetery-hopper!

The Mayor, Faith, Mr. Trick, Angel's return, Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, snow in Sunnydale, Graduation Day, Zachary Kralick, the end of the world -- again!, Spike, Veruca, Tara, Riley, Maggie Walsh, The Initiative, Adam -- and much, much more!

The Buffyverse: The World According to Buffy Summers.
Everybody Hurts: In Sunnydale, love can be downright scary.
Anarchy in the USA: How Buffy and Giles came to be footloose and Council-free.
Power Girls: Buffy, Kendra, Faith -- wasn't it supposed to be "Chosen One?"

BONUS: Creating Buffy: From brainstorm, to script, to genius on the small screen -- with a few tiny detours along the way.
Go behind the scenes for Season Four's pivotal episode "The I in Team" and catch all the action, from scouting locations to running lines with the stellar cast to music editing -- it's all inside!

THE GUYS, THE GALS, THE LORE, THE LINGO
The chillingly complete WATCHER'S GUIDE VOLUME 2 will slay you

Cynthia Leitich Smith (Tantalize) gives us a love triangle between a vampire, a ghost and a human girl, in which none of them are who or what they seem

Claudia Gray (Evernight) takes us into the world of her Evernight series, in which a pre-Civil War courtesan-to-be is courted by a pale, fair-haired man whose attentions are too dangerous to spurn

Richelle Mead (the Vampire Academy series) brings us the tale of a young vampire on the run from the rest of her kind, and the human boy who provides the getaway car

Nancy Holder (the Wicked series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) immerses us in a post-apocalyptic New York where two best friends are forced to make a choice that may kill them both

Kristin Cast (the House of Night series) introduces us to a new kind of vampire: one with roots in Greek mythology, and the power to alter space and time

And Tanith Lee (Black Unicorn) shows us what happens when a bright young woman with some supernatural savvy encounters a misguided (but gorgeous) young vampire

From a place of nightmares -- which Buffy and Faith share -- a terrible evil invades Sunnydale, setting off disaster. Clearly, the big evil is linked to the Slayers' nightmares, which revolve around four figures: one burning, one dripping wet, one covered in mud, one shrouded in windswept linen. Each carries a box of grafted skin and bone. Giles learns that the last Slayer to encounter a similar container was India Cohen -- Buffy's immediate predecessor.

Strangely, Buffy has never given much thought to the young girl whose death activated her own Slayerdom, but now she must draw on the strength of those who came before her. For Buffy is being stalked by a monstrous force that journeys through time, fortifying itself by draining the primal power of a Slayer. Buffy must orient herself on a continuum against evil that predates even humanity itself....

With the closing of the Hellmouth and the awakening of hundreds of potential slayers, Buffy Summers thought she had overturned the Slayer's self-sacrifice and earned herself a much-deserved break. But the thrill of victory is short-lived. The Forces of Darkness are not ones to graciously accept defeat, and the collective rage unites disparate and powerful parties more eager than ever to reclaim dominance.

Willow's magickal distribution of the slayer essence left girls across the world discovering their latent power. Giles races to reorganize the now much-needed Watchers Council, and the Scoobies relocate to Europe. And there in Rome, Buffy is drawn to the Immortal -- a charismatic, if inscrutable, figure. But then comes word that a number of the fresh slayers are being coerced to join an army of slayers -- governed by the mysterious "Queen of the Slayers," an awesome evil determined to claim the intoxicating slayer essence for herself.

Xander is sent to Africa to learn more about the origin of the slayer essence. Instead, he returns to report that, alarmingly, there's not enough good in the world to counteract the overabundance of evil, and that the deciding apocalypse is drawing much too near. Alliances are formed and loyalties betrayed as it comes down to slayer versus slayer, leading to an ultimate battle of champions -- from Buffy's past and present. And then an unimaginable gift arrives...

From the first vampire staking to the last glimpse of Sunnydale, Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a genre-busting hit, attracting millions of fans worldwide. The last three seasons ran the gamut from an episode without music to a musical episode, from the arrival of a teenage sister to the death of Buffy (again).

Now the third volume in this best-selling series of companions will break down every episode of seasons five, six, and seven -- from the villains and the victims to quotables and love bytes -- as well as take a wide-ranging look back at the entire run of the show.

Additional features:

• Flashback Foreshadowing: A line-by-line deconstruction of the portents in the season four finale, "Restless"

• "Lost" lines of dialogue, stage directions, and descriptions cut from the original teleplays

• The Trio's Pop-Culture Explosion: Mastering the references of Geek Speak

• Critical (and not-so) essays from a variety of contributors on topics from Buffy's romantic optimism to Dawn's unfulfilled potential

Seven years, 144 episodes, 3 Slayers, 3 principals, 2 networks, 2 vampires with souls, 2 Watchers, 2 pigs, 1 Master, 1 Mayor, and 1 hit show (with tons of Potentials): It all adds up to one must-have volume!

Around Sunnydale, they say a scarecrow saturated with Halloween rain will come alive and slaughter anyone in sight. (Lovely place, Sunnydale.) Buffy's best friends, Xander and Willow, used to think the tale was nonsense -- but after a few adventures with Buffy, they're not so sure.

Even without a maniacal scarecrow, a Sunnydale Halloween is a truly horrific happening. There are enough zombies and vampires about, ready to party hearty and eat some brains, to keep the Slayer and her friends up all night.

And then rain starts to fall....

Slayer duties caused Buffy to miss picking up her Yearbook, so Willow took it for her and enlisted the help of Xander, 0z, Cordelia, Giles, and Angel to make it truly special. Filled with personal notes, candid photos, and in-jokes about Slayerfest, Halloween, substitute teachers, the principal who was eaten, Ascension, etc. -- Buffy's Yearbook is part school publication, part memory book.

Written by the authors of the bestselling The Watcher's Guide, this keepsake volume is packed with key references to the show and characters, 32 full-color pages of fan-favorite moments, and Graduation photos!

From the Anasazi villages of A.D. 1250 to Shanghai, China, in 1866, from Hollywood in the '40s to Buffy's predecessor in Tokyo of the '90s, Slayers have always risen above their most recent defeat.

Four best-selling Buffy novelists come together in a collection of novellas chronicling tales of Slayers past. Christopher Golden, Nancy Holder, Mel Odom, and Yvonne Navarro each present a new entry in the historic line of Slayers.

Jousting contests, human chess matches, lords and ladies and beggars...a traveling Renaissance fair has come to Sunnydale. The fair may seem terminally uncool, but Buffy and her friends are charmed anyway. Especially by a sad-eyed boy named Roland, who serves as the court jester.

Unfortunately, the people from the fair are not the only visitors in Sunnydale. Roaming the countryside are nasty little creatures with a taste for flesh: the dark faerie. They are minions of the Wild Hunt, servants of the evil Erl King.

Buffy's challenge is to annihilate the king and his murderous horde. But the path to his destruction leads straight to Roland, who is not quite human...and destined to become the Slayer's mortal adversary.

The First has come to Sunnydale and set its sights on taking down the Slayer. On the side of the White Hats: Buffy, Xander, Willow, Anya, Dawn, Giles, Spike, Faith, Angel, and an assortment of young, innocent, untried Potentials.

In this season-spanning storyline, Buffy Summers will learn about the primeval origins of her own strength, and have the opportunity to train those would succeed her. And as the forces of evil find their way back to the Hellmouth -- where it all began -- the Slayer will uncover what being the Chosen One is all about: Power.

"She's laid down her life -- literally -- to protect the people around her. This girl has died, two times, and she's still standing. You're scared, that's smart. You got questions, you should. But you doubt her motive, you think Buffy is about the kill...then you take the little bus to battle. I've see her heart -- this time not literally -- and I'll tell you right now she cares more about your lives than you will ever know. You gotta trust her. She's earned it." -- Xander, "Dirty Girls"

Meanwhile, in the City of Angels, Cordelia stumbles upon a vampire-worshiping cult of runaways as Angel investigates an invisible presence wreaking havoc in the local prisons.

Now Buffy and pals must deal with identity crises of their own. Buffy may be the Chosen One, but she is, ultimately, expendable. Angel is unique, yet his particular status isolates him from humanity and monsters alike. So while all wonder -- do I make a difference? -- the humans and demons who surround them answer that question in astonishing ways...

Back in L.A., gang violence and vigilantism are at a fever pitch. The Slayerettes -- now an extended unit -- are holding down the fort, awaiting Buffy and Angel's return. But Slayer and Vampire are feeling moral conflict that rivals the physical strain of demon-slaying: each wonders if a reality exists where their love could have survived. And when one of the duo's charges is suddenly killed, the portal to Sunnydale is sealed. Now, before they can worry about ridding their own universe of supernatural chaos, they've got to find a way to get back to it....

BORN: Ireland DIED: Ireland

CURRENT RESIDENCE: Sunnydale, CA

AGE: 242 years and counting

"Things used to be pretty simple. Hundred years, just hanging out, feeling guilty. Really honed my brooding skills. Then she comes along."

After a century of killing without a care, the vampire Angelus was cursed with a conscience and eventually fled to Sunnydale, where he restricted his feeding to blood banks.

Until 16-year-old Buffy Summers, the Vampire Slayer, arrived in town to battle vampires, demons and the Forces of Darkness. First, he has to convince her not to kill him. Then, he has to convince himself not to fall in love with her.

Now, collected for the first time, are three stories from the cult-hit TV series chronicling the beginning of this star crossed love story.

Can Buffy and Angel survive life, death...and beyond?

Back in her hometown, Buffy finds the doorway through which the monsters are gaining all-access passes to our universe. Renegade scientists have discovered how to open the portals from one reality to the next, which could explain where the teens are hidden. But when you're operating near a hellmouth, opening dimensional portals is tricky business: you never know who -- or what -- you're going to attract. With the lives of the kidnapped teens and one dangerously talented young woman at stake, Buffy and Angel join forces to do battle in the uncharted dimension....

EVIL DWELLS HERE

After a vicious shooting spree, the town of Sunnydale is shell-shocked. What could have sparked the random rampage? Buffy Summers can guess. Considering the prophetic dreams she's been having, the Slayer suspects possession by an especially malevolent force. As the police follow their typical false leads, the Slayerettes start up their own research into possible paranormal causes. But when Oz's van is discovered on the side of the road, minus one teen wolf, a distraught Willow turns on Buffy, disrupting the investigation.

With the pressure in Sunnydale mounting, the residents' reactions to stress grow increasingly unpredictable. The Slayer continues her search for answers, narrowly surviving an attack by a well-trained and powerful vampire who brought a gruesome death to every Slayer who crossed her path. Is this the ancient creature behind the recent influx of evil? Or is there another influence...close to home?

The Hellmouth (a.k.a. Sunnydale, CA) has drawn vampires, witches, and other demons to its powerful vortex. Now it has also drawn the attention of an ancient set of Druids -- allies in Buffy Summers' battle against the Undead.

Clocked in Darkness, wrapped in mystery, the Druids descend on Sunnydale ready to perform new rituals to summon forth a new world order, free from the evil that shapes Buffy's nights.

But the Slayer's concerns are more immediate -- someone is stalking her friends. Cordelia, Xander, and Oz -- all are falling victim to this spell. And now it's up to Willow and Giles to find the cause, while Buffy stands between the Mouth of Hell and the New Dawn.

Buffy Summers is on the trail of a killer demon in Sunnydale, and reluctantly accepts the help of Spike. Anything's better than his moping around. But Spike -- as usual -- has his own agenda, and it involves something the demon is carrying: a vial of pure magickal power. Spike knows plenty of people and demons who will pay top dollar for this vial: Doc, Rack...and an ancient evil known as The First.

Spike has encountered The First before. In the good old days in Victorian London, when Spike, Drusilla, Angelus, and Darla ran through the night in pursuit of dark fun, another evil being was stalking the streets, dispatching young women with brutal efficiency. But when the so-called "Jack the Ripper" struck too close to their twisted "family," the vampires found themselves on the same side as the Slayer of that time. Working to bring down Jack, and running afoul of The First, Spike and the Slayer formed an uneasy alliance, which followed Spike all through the twentieth century to present day Sunnydale, now blanketed in a mysterious fog....

"Things used to be pretty simple. Hundred years, just hanging out, feeling guilty. Really honed my brooding skills. Then she comes along."

After a century of killing without a care, the vampire Angelus was cursed with a conscience and eventually fled to Sunnydale, where he restricted his feeding to blood banks.

Until 16-year-old Buffy Summers, the Vampire Slayer, arrived in town to battle vampires, demons and the Forces of Darkness. First, he has to convince her not to kill him. Then, he has to convince himself not to fall in love with her.

Now, collected for the first time, are three stories from the cult-hit TV series chronicling the beginning of this star crossed love story.

Can Buffy and Angel survive life, death...and beyond?

There's something troubling about Professor Caligari's Traveling Carnival. Perhaps it's that no one can recall the arrival of its hard-to-miss caravan of old-style wagons, countless performers, and horse-drawn carts. Maybe it's the creepy calliope music that tirelessly beckons visitors. Let's face it, an enigma that chooses Sunnydale nearly guarantees it's up to more than wholesome family entertainment.

After a visit to the carnival's Hall of Mirrors, a once-shy pair of homely sophomore twins parades the halls of Sunnydale High like diva supermodels on a runway. Intuiting the twins' abrupt personality change as more than a self-confidence boost, Buffy -- joined by Angel, Giles, and the rest of the Scoobies -- decides to investigate the suspicious carnival firsthand. But soon it's apparent that the price of admission is higher than she imagined. Those who enter the carnival's attractions exit...changed. Each of the gang soon shows extreme displays of vice. Willow is wracked with envy. Cordelia's greed consumes her. Xander unleashes his gluttony. Angel reveals a lusty new persona. And a dark anger rises in Giles. But it's Buffy's now-blinding pride that threatens to overpower her, and in the process destroy those she loves....

For Angel, life as a vampire was a constant thrill. Power, danger, cool clothes (never getting old, also a plus). But in the end, it was all about the kill -- until he killed the wrong girl.

"Gypsies, in my experience, are heavily into vengeance. They cursed me. Gave me back my soul. I had to live with everything I'd done and I had to live forever. It took another woman to show me that my endless life was worth living."

Buffy the Vampire Slayer was Angel's first true love, but the relationship was doomed from the start -- a moment of true happiness would cause Angel to lose his soul forever. So he left -- Sunnydale, Buffy, and everything else meaningful to him.

"Alive for 244 years, I thought I'd seen everything. Then I came to L.A."

City of Angels. Run by powerful forces, agents of pure evil. It's a city hard on its human population. If Angel wants to save himself, he's going to have to save them...somehow. With the help of two unlikely allies -- a half-demon and a ex -- May Queen -- he's going to set up shop....

And keep watch over his city.

In his first year in Los Angeles, Angel, the vampire with a soul, came across an inter-dimensional hunter named Jhiera. The seductive woman was only trying to protect other females in her culture from being stripped of their emotions -- intense emotions that gave them dominance over men. Angel fell victim to her heat, but Jhiera had to return to her own dimension. Now "She" is back and searching for a lost young woman who may be the key to unleashing an inter-dimensional war -- a war that will be led by a powerful sorcerer, determined to free China's terra-cotta army of fierce samurai from their long imprisonment....

There exists a hell dimension that is very much like the Ninth Circle of Hell that Dante Alighieri described in The Inferno. It is a frozen, desolate place, and the souls of the damned are buried in vast sheets of ice. Evil beings from many different dimensions have been sent there. The descendants of the imprisoned are chipping away at the barriers that separate the dimensions, hoping to free those trapped in the ice, so that they may return and claim this world for their own. One of these demons is in L.A. searching for Jhiera, hoping to strike a deal that will persuade her to thaw his soldiers -- and dragons -- in exchange for their help overthrowing the Vigories of Oden Tal. But what form will this demonic army take when it arrives in our world?

In Sunnydale, Buffy Summers is casting about in her new life -- as school counselor, guardian of Dawn, best friend, keeper of Spike's sanity, and of course as Slayer -- hoping to find something, anything, that will give her back that "finished" feeling. A demonic army with a dragon at its head is so not what she needs right now.

And in L.A., Angel and Gunn -- each man pining for a woman he can never have, for a time that will never be what it was -- stumble across a raging battle at a museum. Angel is astonished to see the inter-dimensional fugitive Jhiera again...and to have the same feelings for her come rushing back to the surface. Jhiera escapes, and the Angel Investigations gang starts poking around, trying to discover why the Oden Tal woman was at the museum -- a museum featuring an archaeological exhibit of the terra-cotta army of samurai figurines that were found in a Chinese emperor's tomb. They are a marvel to behold, and both Los Angeles and Sunnydale are lucky enough to host the exhibit.

That can't be a coincidence...can it?

When the frozen hell dimension is thawed and opened, a demonic army will enter this world through the Hellmouth. The various creatures will occupy the forms of the ready-made army, and a war will be waged.

"Los Angeles. It's a city like no other....People are drawn here. People, and other things. They come for all kinds of reasons. My reason? It started with a girl."
-- Angel, "City of"

For a hundred years, Angel offered an ugly death to everyone he met. And he did it with a song in his heart. A gypsy curse put a stop to his rampage, but his doomed love of Buffy the Vampire Slayer drove him from Sunnydale on his own quest for redemption.

Fortunately, he's not alone. His support system includes Cordelia Chase, ex-May Queen (just until her inevitable stardom takes effect); Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, Rogue Demon Hunter; and Gunn (Charles Gunn, his name, not his street tag). Their rates are low, and their logo is indecipherable -- but they save people, and stuff.

Salem is thrilled. After all, the Egyptians really knew how to treat their feline friends -- they worshiped them as gods. But when the Cat Goddess Bast falls hard for the fast-talking black cat, she puts him under a love spell and locks his traveling companions in the maze of the Great Pyramid. As Sabrina and Valerie wind their way through the life-sized puzzle, they enlist the help of some magical figures -- and a handsome young pharaoh on hiatus from his sarcophagus. But can they bring Salem to his senses before Bast morphs him into a mummy.

Burning Bodies

A crime wave has swept the Los Angeles area, which under normal circumstances would be par for the course. But nothing links these particular victims except the cause of death -- their bodies were burned from the inside out. Obviously supernatural forces are at work.

While Angel investigates the murders, Cordelia tracks down a band of child pickpockets. Surprisingly, both searches lead to the same place: a wealthy slumlord who has all but imprisoned the children's immigrant parents.

And conducts elaborate rituals to Latura, the Indonesian God of the Dead.

Angel, Doyle, and Cordelia may have had a rocky start in L.A., but they realize they've got it much easier than the immigrants. Characteristically, Angel wants to help. But can he free them before the Feast of Latura? And if not, will they become the next sacrifices of someone's quest for immortality?

But sorrow and grief soon give way to bewildered fascination as one by one, strange incidents begin to occur. Such as the fact that any desire Holly whispers to her cat seems to come true. Or the fact that a beloved friend is injured after a freak attack from a vicious falcon. Or the fact of an undeniably magnetic and familiar attraction to a boy Holly barely knows.

Holly, Amanda, and Nicole are about to be launched into a dark legacy of secrets, alliances, and machinations, where ancient magics yield dangerous results, where possession is commonplace, and where reincarnation is taken for granted -- and the three girls must take on roles in an intergenerational feud the likes of which they could never have imagined....

Cordelia Chase is accustomed to being rocked by visions of horror courtesy of the Powers That Be. But she is particularly disturbed to be visited with the image of someone she knows: Faith, the rogue Slayer who is being stalked in prison by the supernatural. The picture becomes clearer when Chaz Escobar, a onetime game hunter, arrives at Angel Investigations. He explains that he is searching for his wife, Marianna, a vampire. He had been working on the cure for her vampirism on a small, distant island -- but she escaped. He suspects her for being the monster harassing Faith.

When Faith is magickally sprung from jail -- straight into Marianna's clutches -- Angel's team and Chaz are off to the island preserve to save her. If Chaz's goal is to rid the world of vampires -- even those with a soul -- would this be Angel's chance to right all his past wrongs? Can the cosmic scales be balanced if Angel allows Chaz to continue his research, even it means Angel's death?

Sabrina, Harvey, Valerie, and Libby have one week to redo their lame science project about space. But before they have a chance to begin, Sabrina finds a puzzle with a spell that transports them to Paris in 1783. Suddenly Sabrina and the three mortals find themselves captive in the barn of two crazy French hot-air balloon inventors. Enter the balloonist's niece -- and admirer of Harvey -- who helps the teens escape.

Along the trail, they learn the ups and downs -- literally -- of the hot-air balloon and discover a link between their project and the magic puzzle. But then -- zap! A storm brews with the foursome onboard. Will they solve the puzzle and make it back to Westbridge before lightning strikes?

Holly Cathers and her twin cousins, Amanda and Nicole, are college students who are also the last descendants of the medieval witches of the House of Cahors. Forming a new coven, they ally themselves with the forces of light and set out to end the vendetta that has ruled -- and ruined -- their family's history for centuries.

Holly has traveled to England to save her imprisoned soulmate, Jer, who is a member of the House of Deveraux -- and the Cathers' worst enemy. But following dangerously on her heels is Michael, Jer's father and head of the Deveraux coven, who is looking to derive ultimate power from a witch consort.

Now Holly learns that her uncle and her mother's best friend are in grave danger, and that she must enter the Nightmare Dreamtime and battle demons and other forces of darkness in order to save them. But can Holly successfully fight these horrors, and safely return home?

When a mysterious stranger helped her discover her family's legacy of fighting evil, things began to make sense in Isabella DeMarco's life. But could she marshal her newfound supernatural powers to fend off the formidable vampire hell-bent on bringing Izzy down in flames?

Buffy Summers is hip, modern, and pop culture savvy. Rupert Giles, her Watcher, is a stuffy Brit whose idea of bliss is a good book and a strong cup of tea. Odd as the duo may be, though, they have managed to avert their fair share of apocalypses. Plural.

One thing they can't seem to conquer, however, is Buffy's bad birthday luck. At eighteen, Buffy is subjected to a Watcher's Council Cruciamentum, a test of her own non-physical wiles -- and of Giles's attitude toward both his charge and his calling, as well. And when the Slayerettes throw a surprise party for Buffy's big 1-9, Giles finds himself feeling useless and out-of-the-loop-y. But it is at the Slayer's twentieth birthday gathering that both Buffy and Giles are forced to re-examine the nature of blood ties and the definition of family -- or risk losing a mutual loved one more important to them -- and the fate of the world -- than either ever imagined....

Ethan Rayne returns to Sunnydale and unleashes a long-trapped evil sorcerer from Middle Ages Bavaria. As if that and Ethan's true motivation weren't enough to keep Buffy from her chemistry homework, she soon finds herself encountering a seemingly random parade of old adversaries out to settle the score.

But a new warlock has arrived in Seattle. Alex Carruthers has power, looks, and charisma. Will he turn the Tri-Coven in a new direction? And will he sacrifice Holly to the greater good?

Holly learns from a vision that Jer is still alive. As leader of the coven, she resolves to rescue him despite the fact that he is a member of the Deveraux clan and therefore her enemy. But her efforts are thwarted when her aunt reveals the nature of an ancient curse visited upon all Cathers witches. It becomes clear to Holly that the death of her parents was no accident, and a similar plague is sure to fall on anyone she grows close to. As her power strengthens, can Holly escape her destiny? And if her destiny includes Jer, does she want to?

What her aunt does not realize is that Bekah had come to California not to seek adventure, but refuge from the tragic fire that had claimed the life of David MacLaughlin -- her fiancé. Bekah now plans to return home and marry David's twin brother, Ian, who shares David's last name but none of his independence.

On the journey home she encounters Scott DeAngelo, a brash New Yorker and naval ensign. Scott is pushy, opinionated, and overwhelming, and Bekah steels herself against the undeniable attraction that develops between them. That is, until the morning of December 7, when a surprise attack on American warships takes the island by storm, and Bekah is forced to choose between her sense of responsibility and her love for Scott....

Nothing has been the same for Deuce McNamara since. Once a bagman for the lowly Borgioli clan, Deuce's association with Hunter Castle has made him the Godfather of the Moon. But the job isn't all it's cracked up to be. Earth has declared war on the Moon. Deuce's wife, the beautiful Sparkle de Lune, has betrayed him, leaving with Castle on a mysterious mission to the space of the alien !kth are planning an invasion...one only he can stop. Provided he lives that long when disgruntled Family members are out to get him at every turn. Dealt cards like these, most gamblers would fold. But not Deuce McNamara. Not when the stakes he's playing for are the lives of his wife and children...and the fate of all mankind.

"Follow me and I promise I will be the most benevolent dictator the word has ever seen" -- Salem

But He's Innocent!

Salem is organizing a reunion for all the power-hungry warlocks now serving time as household pets. But after all that work, he needs a break. So when a former follower suggests an exciting outside adventure, Salem sneaks out of the house.

But then Salem and his friend are mistakenly nabbed by the dogcatcher and thrown behind bars. Life at the pound is the pits -- until Salem meets his fellow furry inmates and realizes all may not be lost. They need a leader, and he's a natural. Together, they can blow the joint wide open!